The Other Death of International Law

Abstract

Lawyers have begun to think of the legal events and institution-building related to the demise of Yugoslavia as raising new hope for international law. The recognition of newly self-determining sovereign entities that was facilitated by the European Community, together with the creation by the UN Security Council of an international criminal tribunal, constitute instances of newfound political authority over political disputes. On the other hand, close examination of the recognition process of the European Community and the constitutional stature of the ad hoc criminal court reveals political considerations to have dominated normative principles. Thus, while in form the legal events surrounding the Yugoslavia conflict seem to reflect the triumph of internationalism over the force of sovereignty, in substance they reflect precisely the opposite. In analyzing these legal pronouncements through the lens of the fantasy stories of Jorge Luis Borges, one can begin to appreciate international law's conceptual embarrassment of riches. For this is all a dream we dreamed one afternoon long ago.Hunter & Lesh, Box of Rain.